... would you do it?

I don't mean to ask WHAT you would do (although if you care to answer that question, I shan't turn up my nose in disgust at the tangent.)

But think about the question itself. If you could change the world, in any one way, would you do it? That's one way only; as in, a one way street. No turning back. No turning a corner. Just one change, and that's the way it stays.

But, since change breeds change, your change is certain not to be the last.

Perhaps that's what you're betting on; 'if I change this, this will cause other changes which will change things for the better.' Imagine, for example, what would happen if a free, limitless, clean, dirt-cheap energy source was invented that could be used everywhere, immediately, with barely any need for an initial investment. Not only would people have power, but people who couldn't have had power before could have it now, which might allow for the social services to change for the better, which might mean happier people. On the other hand, the events that follow your change might be completely unexpected. For example, your free, cheap, clean, limitless power source might turn out to torture the souls of all the unbaptized cats and dogs that are rotting in pet purgatory. Or it might be uncool, like the electric car. And that would mean that we'd all be sissies. :(

So, would you have enough confidence in your own judgment - or pride in your own, possibly misguided ideals - to make your 'one change' upon the earth, and then live with the consequences?

Taking every angle seriously, I would make that one change. My only trust is that it would be such an insignificant change in the world's eyes that the Hurricane wouldn't follow the Butterfly's gentle flapping wings.

As to what the change is, I cannot say, for it is very selfish ^.^

As a side note, I believe humanity survives by adaptation, whatever may come, they will adapt themselves to it. Both sides of themselves, the good and the bad. So large changes may very well be the doom of us, even if completely good natured.

if i had the power to do what i want to
i would definitely change the fact of global warming from taking place

@Veris - Self interest is nothing to be ashamed of. Unless it involves something shameful. Or unless all selfish things are to be ashamed of, in which case, you have just admitted enough of your wish for us to know it is shameful. Bad Veris! :evil: *Shakes finger.* Bad!

As for trivial changes, we make them all the time. That's an entropy which is barely containable. Nor should it be contained, many would argue.

Originally Posted by Sofa King Cool

if i had the power to do what i want to
i would definitely change the fact of global warming from taking place

But how would you do so? Wouldn't you have to either change the past, or change the nature of the planet itself?

Oops, busted! XD

It just seems shameful to make a selfish decision when you could do so much more with the choice. I guess it's something I would give the world for ^^;

But back on the topic question..

If you could change the world in any one way... would you do it?

It relies a lot upon the change in question. But if there are a limitless number of possible consequences to any and -every- change you make 'in this way' then would I make it? No, I probably wouldn't; not trusting my own judgement at risking the world's existence.

I don't think I would want to take the risk of catastrophe should I change the world in a large way, unless it were something that would make the whole population less prone to violence. However, that could backfire; as seen in Serenity from the colonists of Miranda. They became so peaceful and calm that they sat down and died. All passion was gone.
I think I would keep the world the way that it is...except maybe I would change the world in getting everyone to recycle and pick up trash. Roadside trash is disgusting :(

@Veris - That's alright, Veris. *Pats you on the shoulder.* There is still time to repent and submit yourself to the whims of the parasitic majority.

Well, every single choice you make affects the world in some way. Bigger changes affect it faster, but your mere existance has an effect on the world around you that will in some way affect the entire world; some of these changes might seem negligible from your point of view as a human, such as the carbon dioxide you exhale or the imprint of your shoes in the earth you walk on, but to other beings, these small things might be catastrophic. With a single step you might bring an empire of ants tumbling to their many knees (not that ants do that when distressed, but you get the point.) Even on a human level, your actions have repercussions; if you are unkind to a store clerk, you might cause his mood to change for the worse, which might cause him to go home and be distant to his son, who might have become president if only he had had a better father figure. Or alternatively, your cheer and good manner might inspire a young woman to renew her faith in humanity, giving her power to research the cure for cancer.

Now, you might think that these are all highly unlikely scenarios, but recognize that the principle behind them - good action tends to spur good action, and the same for bad action - means that who ever you come in contact with becomes more likely to spread the positivity or negativity of your will, making the consequences of your actions exponential.

(No pressure.) :)

@Miranda - Does that mean you would oppose others inventing world-changing technologies for fear that those technologies might bring down the world?

An end to roadside trash? D= But think of all the poor raccoons who have made McDonalds a staple of their diet! What are they to do?

No Pressure =D

But if that's the case, and everything we do has the potential to have a tumbling reaction into a gigantic snowball of good or evil, then who could ever make any such change to the world? Though I suppose it leads down to who can make a decision that is followed by uncertainty, which is every decision there is to be made. Which in turn, would be everyone, as every day we make those uncertain decisions.

So, theoretically, Everyone would change the world in a way they saw fit if they could. And the result would be, in theory, exactly what we have now. ^.^ Who's to say everyone's huge change wouldn't have a counterpart change that unchanges it? right? =^.^=

@ Raccoon/Roadside Trash Argument: Raccoons have survived without McDonald's. There are Raccoons that still do, and always will. Roadside trash does far more harm, than benefit. Cigarette butts, for example, are made of the rolling paper and a fibrous filter that does not biodegrade. Ingestion of these filters is harmful to the wildlife. As said in "The Real Scoop on Cigarette Butts":

Cigarette filters are not made of cotton and they do not biodegrade. They are made of compressed fibers of cellulose acetate, a plastic, similar to photographic film. Each filter contains a bundle of 12,000 tiny fibers painted white with titanium dioxide, which can be likened to shoe polish.

Cigarette butts leak toxins where-ever they are cast aside. Not to mention that the filters actually cause you to breath in more carcinogens as well as some of the fibers in the filter. Nasty Nasty things.